North Carolina got their first ACC win by edging Florida State in a back-and-forth game in Tallahassee Saturday, 77-72.

2:10 2nd: UNC 75, FSU 72

UNC has eight offensive rebounds in the second half alone to help them in challenging Florida State down the stretch. Jackson Simmons had contributed eight points with four rebounds - all offensive.

7:59 2nd: FSU 60, UNC 59

The game has been close since the opening tip and, as the clock moves under eight minutes, the finish in Tallahassee promises to be much of the same between UNC and Florida State.

15:22 2nd: UNC 46, FSU 43

Both teams came out of the break scoring with UNC adding a point to their slim lead at the first media timeout. Heels ahead 46-43.

HALF: UNC 33, Florida State 31

Despite nine first-half turnovers, UNC holds a 17-9 rebounding advantage, has made six 3-pointers and holds a 33-31 lead on the Seminoles at halftime in Tallahassee.

PJ Hairston leads the heels in scoring with 11 off the bench. James Michael McAdoo has 7 points and 5 rebounds at half.

3:40 1st: FSU 26, UNC 25

Florida State jumped in front with a three-pointer as the teams have already combined for 10 long balls. UNC hols a big rebounding edge, but has also turned the ball over eight times.

7:43 1st: UNC 19, FSU 17

The game remains close at the under-8 timeout. UNC is holding a 10-5 advantage in rebounds.

9:06 1st: UNC 19, FSU 15

UNC has turned the ball over five times, but four 3-pointers have helped the offense get out to a 19-15 lead midway through the first half.

PJ Hairston leads all scorers with eight points off the bench.

15:33 1st: UNC 6, FSU 6

UNC jumped out to a 6-0 lead bolstered by a three from Marcus Paige, but the Noles have stormed back to tie it at the first media timeout.

20:00 1st: UNC vs. Florida State

UNC will trot out their standard staring lineup of Desmond Hubert, James Michael McAdoo, Reggie Bullock, Dexter Strickland and Marcus Paige for the tip in Talahassee.

Pregame

The North Carolina Tar Heels will be out for revenge Saturday at 2 p.m. when they head to the Donald L. Tucker Center to face the Florida State Seminoles in Atlantic Coast Conference action.

Although UNC holds a 42-12 all-time series lead over the Seminoles, it lost to Florida State by 33 points in Tallahassee last season before falling to FSU, 85-82, in the ACC Tournament. The Seminoles have never defeated UNC three times in a row.

The makeup for that Tar Heels unit was much different, as they were ranked third in the nation entering last season's regular season matchup. North Carolina has a long way to go to return to the upper echelon. Roy Williams and his squad built some momentum prior to league play as they downed UNLV (79-73) in Chapel Hill, but they lost back-to-back games for the first time this season after their encounters at Virginia (61-52) and versus Miami- Florida (68-59).

A loss in this one will give the Tar Heels an 0-3 conference record, which would equal the program's worst ACC start.

Leonard Hamilton's Seminoles took care of business in the early stages of their league slate by notching road wins over Clemson (71-66) and Maryland (65-62) to raise their overall record to 10-5. Florida State has clearly gained steam since its mediocre 4-4 start. The Seminoles are in the middle of the road in the ACC in most statistical categories, but they are averaging a conference-best 5.2 blocks per game after rejecting 13 of the Terrapins' attempts in their last outing. More UNC Stories

UNC was limited to a season-low 52 points in its conference opener by a Virginia squad that leads the nation in scoring defense. But it continued to suffer offensive woes its next time out, producing only 59 points on 40 percent shooting from the field versus the Hurricanes. The scoring drought for the Tar Heels is somewhat confusing, as they come into this contest averaging 79.9 ppg, good for ninth nationally.

The team has benefited from good ball movement as well, ranking fourth nationally in assists per game (18.5). Sophomore forward James Michael McAdoo was expected to be one of the top players in the NCAA this season after showing flashes of brilliance during his freshman campaign. While McAdoo is producing 14.5 points and 8.1 rebounds per contest to pace UNC, he still has a ways to go to be considered one of the elite. Reggie Bullock is next in the scoring column (13.6 ppg), shooting an impressive .480 from 3-point range. P.J. Hairston rounds out the double-figure scorers (11.6 ppg).

FSU used a balanced attack to fend off the Terps on Wednesday. Okaro White scored 20 points on 7-of-13 shooting from the field while adding nine rebounds and six blocks to spearhead the effort. Michael Snaer was 5-of-8 from the floor, adding 15 points, while Ian Miller scored 12, hitting on 3-of-6 from beyond the arc.

The Seminoles turned defense into offense as Maryland's 18 turnovers were converted into 13 points. Snaer has been the go-to-guy for Florida State, as he is averaging 15.6 points and 5.3 rebounds per game, while shooting .404 from the field and .408 from the 3-point line. White is a superb second option with 13.3 points and 6.3 boards per contest.

The Tar Heels will need a huge effort to take down this feisty FSU squad. The 3-point arc may play a vital role as neither side is shy from long distance. UNC seems to be missing a necessary link, which could hurt as Hamilton's Seminoles are clicking as a group at the perfect time.

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Tar Heels Victory-Show No MercerJan 12, 2013

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Are you as nervous as I am?

— Posted by StunGunn

I was nervous up until the final buzzer. They really needed this win!

andersonJan 12, 2013

Where has that team been all season? Why hasn't Roy been playing Simmons more? They actually moved without the ball on offense. Defense is still going to cost them a lot though...they can't guard on the perimeter and don't have anyone down low who can consistenly hold down the other teams' big men. Good hustle, but can they keep it up with a week layoff and playing a very good Maryland team?

PanthersFan45Jan 12, 2013

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Great weekend for NCAAB!!!! Tough games. Just found out Wisconsin dominated Illinois. Hopefully State will get some credit and take their #12 spot. Hope to see you guys back in the top 25 soon too. Great win Heels.

— Posted by JPack

I was channel surfing and paused on the Big Ten Network and saw Wisconsin holding a 37-11 lead (at the time) in the 1st half of that game ... then the Badgers hit a 3-pointer, it was a basting. I gree that State should jump way up, maybe even to number 10.

I missed the 2nd half of the Heels game but I came back later to see that they won. Good for them, they desperately needed to get things turned around. No question Roy has the talent, their just a young bunch that needs time to learn each others tendencies and play as a unit.

VT1994HokieJan 12, 2013

View quoted thread

Are you as nervous as I am?

— Posted by StunGunn

You are resting. I'm stressed. Maybe a win though.

JPackJan 12, 2013

Great weekend for NCAAB!!!! Tough games. Just found out Wisconsin dominated Illinois. Hopefully State will get some credit and take their #12 spot. Hope to see you guys back in the top 25 soon too. Great win Heels.

VT1994HokieJan 12, 2013

View quoted thread

Heels gutted it out. I can't believe FSU hit 5 3-Pointers to start the 2nd. I was screaming at the TV. Great win at a critical time and an turning point, I HOPE, for the Heels. Party Hardy my Tar Heel friends.

Whoot!!!Go Tar Heels!!!#Simmons Blood

— Posted by Rameses Unchained

Solid game for the Heels. Congrat's.

Rameses UnchainedJan 12, 2013

Heels gutted it out. I can't believe FSU hit 5 3-Pointers to start the 2nd. I was screaming at the TV. Great win at a critical time and an turning point, I HOPE, for the Heels. Party Hardy my Tar Heel friends.